Whole roasted Tandoori Cauliflower is a 30-minute, impressive Indian vegetarian dish, in which a flavor-packed, roasted cauliflower head is served with homemade gravy and pickled onions!
Clean and trim Cauliflower: To clean the cauliflower head, submerge it in a bowl of water + ½ teaspoon salt. Remove and shake off any excess water. Using a pairing knife, cut off the leaves around the stem, trim the bottom stem and tough core, but keep the head intact.
Prepare Marinade: In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients for the marinade. Mix well.
Marinate Cauliflower: Using a pastry brush, liberally spread the marinade all over the cauliflower, going in between florets, under and over. Wrap it up in aluminum foil and refrigerate it upside down for 15 minutes, up to 2 hours.
Saute aromatics: Turn on Saute. Melt butter and add chopped onion and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes until the onions soften. Cancel Saute. Add vegetable stock and garam masala.
Pressure Cook: Place a high trivet with handles. Place the marinated cauliflower on top ensuring that it is not touching the water. Pressure cook on high for 2 minutes (see notes for timing adjustment). When the time is up, wait 5 minutes then manually release the pressure and open the lid after the pin drops.
Brown cauliflower: Carefully transfer the cauliflower head to an oven-safe dish or tray. Brush the head with oil and broil it at high for 5-7 minutes, or until browned to your liking.
Make Gravy: Turn on Saute to make gravy. Stir in cornstarch in the heavy whipping cream, and whisk until smooth. Add this mixture in slowly, while stirring the gravy. Continue to simmer for a few minutes until the gravy thickens. Check for taste, then cancel Saute and transfer to a gravy boat for serving.
Garnish and Serve: Remove from oven and sprinkle chopped cilantro and sliced almonds. Slice off a wedge (like you would cut a cake)and cut that into individual slices for serving. Serve with gravy and pickled onions.
Pickled Onions
Thinly slice onions and separate the rings. Add them to a 16-ounce mason jar. In a saucepan combine water, vinegar, salt, sugar, and red chili powder, and bring it to a simmer, then turn off the heat. Carefully pour over onions. Gently push down the onions to submerge them. Close the lid and leave it at the counter for 30 minutes. Refrigerate after cooling.
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Notes
Wash the cauliflower. I definitely recommend cleaning the cauliflower head by submerging it in a bowl of salt water. This helps remove any dirt and grime that's tucked in the nooks and crannies.
Marinate thoroughly. Make sure you liberally spread the marinade all over the cauliflower, even between the florets. You want that delicious flavor in every single bite, not just on the outside.
Cook time: I know. Two minutes seems like a pretty quick cook time for a whole head of cauliflower—even for the instant pot. This isn't the time it's actually cooking through. The instant pot takes time to come to pressure before the timer starts counting down. In that time, the cauliflower is being cooked. That being said, adjust the pressure cook time to 1 minute for a 1 pound cauliflower head, or 3 minutes for 3 pounds.
Spice level: you can adjust the spice level easily by adding more or less Kashmiri red chili powder. If you like a really mild flavor, swap the red chili powder for paprika.
Note: The nutrition facts below are my estimates and include gravy and pickled onions. If you are following any diet plan, I recommend cross-checking with your preferred nutrition calculator.